"Help!" for: Papercraft or Pepakura

[Admiral Tiberius]

some of the tutorial threads taught me that using a pen and ruler to score the lines helps a bunch! super clean. Personally i use the back side of my exacto knife, and even without a ruler, with a steady hand you can easily get clean folds. Also try not to force the paper to do something. the program makes cuts and folds so that you shouldn't have to really force anything. hope this helps

 

[Katsu]

Yes, scoring your fold lines is VERY important. There are tutorial stickies on doing it in the Creation Discussion -> Pepakura subforum.

The pen/ruler method is the easy but sloppier method. The back of the exacto like Admiral says, is the super pro method, but very difficult to nail down. For your skill level the ruler and pen are going to be preferable as you can cut through the paper if you don't use the right pressure with the exacto.

Also, be sure to line up the numbers as best you can, always do a test fit of a new piece before actually gluing it down, as you have limited time to fix issues after gluing it, and you wanna be sure you know how it needs to lay down first.

Lastly, be sure you are using the right glue for you. Some people have good success with hot glue, and if you are finding you mess up a lot and need to be able to backtrack, that is a great method, as you can undo errors easily. PVA glue is a lot easier to work with, but can't be undone without ruining the paper.

Remember that getting two pieces slightly misaligned now, can have a ripple effect that causes a much later piece to be warped or misaligned even worse. So be sure to keep it accurate and clean throughout the entire piece, and don't rush it! If you have specific problems, you can post pics and we can give further insight.

 

[Jokapo]

Can anyone tell me what it means when certain pepakura files say unfolded or not yet unfolded?

 

[Satchmo III]

Can anyone tell me what it means when certain pepakura files say unfolded or not yet unfolded?

A not yet unfolded pepakura file is one that contains the three dimensional data (model) only.

An unfolded pepakura file is one that contains the model along with two dimensional data (pieces) that can be printed out and used to assemble the model with paper (or sometimes foam depending on the chosen medium for the build) in real life.

 

[dirtbikeman]

its probably because its too close to the edge. that happend to me u have to move the pieces towards the middle more, but some pieces are too big and i dont know how to fix it. so i ended up with about 24 sheets of paper.

 

[BurntTheToast]

Hey im using http://halocostuming.wikia.com/wiki/File:(MD)MKVI_Helmet_Slyfo.PNG this pepakura file and its backwards. the nubers are on the opposite sides, it has like 2 visors for some reason and is just plain hard to buid. anyone having the same issues with this file and recommend the best ones you have used

 

[Jokapo]

A not yet unfolded pepakura file is one that contains the three dimensional data (model) only.

An unfolded pepakura file is one that contains the model along with two dimensional data (pieces) that can be printed out and used to assemble the model with paper (or sometimes foam depending on the chosen medium for the build) in real life.

thank you very much good sir. was unsure.

 

[Katsu]

Hey im using http://halocostuming.wikia.com/wiki/File:(MD)MKVI_Helmet_Slyfo.PNG this pepakura file and its backwards. the nubers are on the opposite sides, it has like 2 visors for some reason and is just plain hard to buid. anyone having the same issues with this file and recommend the best ones you have used

I would instead refer to the 4shared database instead.
http://www.4shared.com/folder/rxBUzZt0/405th_Pepakura_Database.html

If you are having truble with that helmet, there are like six variants in the 4shared db you can mess with, some of them are REALLY high def too. I would first try that and see if other files have the same problem, because I've never heard of that issue before...

Edit: Looking at the file... I don't see what you are talking about... If you can take a screencap/photo of the issue. But if this medium def file is giving you trouble, you may want to try a low def instead, and give that a go, however I don't get what the issue is about numbers on opposite sides and two visors, it looks fine from where I'm looking, but I could be blind/wrong.

 

[BurntTheToast]

I would instead refer to the 4shared database instead.
http://www.4shared.com/folder/rxBUzZt0/405th_Pepakura_Database.html

If you are having truble with that helmet, there are like six variants in the 4shared db you can mess with, some of them are REALLY high def too. I would first try that and see if other files have the same problem, because I've never heard of that issue before...

Edit: Looking at the file... I don't see what you are talking about... If you can take a screencap/photo of the issue. But if this medium def file is giving you trouble, you may want to try a low def instead, and give that a go, however I don't get what the issue is about numbers on opposite sides and two visors, it looks fine from where I'm looking, but I could be blind/wrong.

i used 4share to download it.i finished the helmet but it looks like ****. i dont know how to post the pics on here but i will describe it. i dont know if it my printer but everything was on the opposite side. if something on the 3d model was on the left. it was actually on the right. i got used to it fairly quickly. there was a page that when assembled it make a visor (not the flap on the top the visor i will replace with see thru plastic) except the visor had no numbers in the edges so i assumed it didnt attach anywhere and discarded it. now i have resined the outside and cut the bottom edges out so i can squeeze my head in and pan to hopefully make something out of it.

 

[Katsu]

4shared is more than a single thing. The link I supplies you is for the database which has a MUCH larger selection than the wikia, I suggest checking it out.

To post pictures, you have to host them on another site (photobucket, flickr, etc) and then link them in using the IMG tag (There's a button for it when typing your message)

 

[BurntTheToast]

4shared is more than a single thing. The link I supplies you is for the database which has a MUCH larger selection than the wikia, I suggest checking it out.

To post pictures, you have to host them on another site (photobucket, flickr, etc) and then link them in using the IMG tag (There's a button for it when typing your message)

would imgur work?

 

[BurntTheToast]

4shared is more than a single thing. The link I supplies you is for the database which has a MUCH larger selection than the wikia, I suggest checking it out.

To post pictures, you have to host them on another site (photobucket, flickr, etc) and then link them in using the IMG tag (There's a button for it when typing your message)

this is my crappy first helmet. i cut out the visor sloppily but when i get whatever im going to use for the visor will cut it out better

this is the extra visor that clearly has no numbers on the edges. this is not the one i cut out of my helmet.

 

[Katsu]

Ah... I know what's going on here. They have the second visor so that you can vacuum form/heat form/whatever a visor without having to cut out the one in the helmet.

A lot of people don't cut the visor out of the helmet, as it adds a potentially important support to the front of the helmet to keep it from collapsing. Once the helmet's been fiberglassed you can cut it out, but you only want to do that if you intend to wear the fiberglassed helmet (as opposed to casting a plastic copy with latex/silicone). If you cut it out before the fiberglass stage, you can have a disaster on your hands, as the resin alone isn't enough to keep the helmet rigid.

 

[BurntTheToast]

Ah... I know what's going on here. They have the second visor so that you can vacuum form/heat form/whatever a visor without having to cut out the one in the helmet.

A lot of people don't cut the visor out of the helmet, as it adds a potentially important support to the front of the helmet to keep it from collapsing. Once the helmet's been fiberglassed you can cut it out, but you only want to do that if you intend to wear the fiberglassed helmet (as opposed to casting a plastic copy with latex/silicone). If you cut it out before the fiberglass stage, you can have a disaster on your hands, as the resin alone isn't enough to keep the helmet rigid.

i used really strong paper. i fiberglassed it now and its still fine. so i use that visor to mold the new visor to it? it seems to be a little wide.

 

[Katsu]

That's why I don't like those. I prefer to use the one I cut out of the helmet, because I know it'll fit. I'd say toss the extra one..

 

[Cyrus Cane]

Good evening everyone! I experienced some faults on my helmet and want to fix them by cutting that (small) areas out, re-glue a pepakura piece, resin and fiberglas it again and tataa .. have a nice, sweet detail more! Has anyone any experience doing that kind of repair? I'm afraid to kill it ^^

My helmet isn't accurate enough, but still wearable! I just need to remake the areas where the "airpipes" are supposed to be. Next stage would be to use body filler outside..

If i have a chance of success, i'll try it - if not, i'm happy with it! Cheers

 

[Theroden]

I started my first master chief helmet (mkVI) and still cutting and mounting the pep....Before start i had tried different kinds of pappers to print and cut, Need to be a hard papper but not tick so tick. i think the best choice was the Canson 180g(or 85 lbs)... less than this will be very annoying to mark the lines(with the blade) to fold...

 

[Katsu]

I started my first master chief helmet (mkVI) and still cutting and mounting the pep....Before start i had tried different kinds of pappers to print and cut, Need to be a hard papper but not tick so tick. i think the best choice was the Canson 180g(or 85 lbs)... less than this will be very annoying to mark the lines(with the blade) to fold...

85lbs is on the low end of pepakura grade paper. Most people use 110lbs. But I use around 85lbs myself, just have to be careful handling the piece, as it is more likely to crumple than 110lbs.

Good evening everyone! I experienced some faults on my helmet and want to fix them by cutting that (small) areas out, re-glue a pepakura piece, resin and fiberglas it again and tataa .. have a nice, sweet detail more! Has anyone any experience doing that kind of repair? I'm afraid to kill it ^^

My helmet isn't accurate enough, but still wearable! I just need to remake the areas where the "airpipes" are supposed to be. Next stage would be to use body filler outside..

If i have a chance of success, i'll try it - if not, i'm happy with it! Cheers

There are many ways to tackle the issue. I'd say give the remaking it way a shot. worst comes to worst you just completely rebuild it in bondo.

Good luck to you both!

 

[FWBulldog]

I have a question regarding pep accuracy. When I'm cutting out the pieces, do I want to leave the line, or cut in the middle of the line? And when I'm joining two pieces should the top line completely cover the fold line? I've pep'd a few helmets, and they've come out ok. But I always get just a little bit off center, or a little more warpage than I want. I can tell that small errors get magnified the further you go, especially in the tight corners.

What is the "ideal" line-up when you're joining two pieces? Outside black line directly over top of dashes?

 

[Katsu]

You want to cut right in the middle of the line. There are different line thicknesses, and they seem to extend out from a central point.

I wouldn't overthink the overlapping too much, but if you cut right down the middle of the line, you would have the two half-lines attach to each other to complete one whole line. You can also crank down the line thickness in the print settings, which will make them become less of an issue.

The bigger problem is with lining up the numbers perfectly. Those can cause a major ripple effect if they're not lined up right, so double check those! The numbers are meant to act as an indicator for lining up the pieces.